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Revolution : the First Bolshevik Year

Revolution : the First Bolshevik Year

This exhibition looks at the events of the October Revolution and the year that followed, using a wide range of material from the University Library’s collections to illustrate the dramatic 1917-1918 timeline. Manuscripts, maps, music, and ephemera feature alongside books.

Launched in November 2017, the month in which the Gregorian calendar anniversary of the revolution falls, the exhibition grew over the course of the 2017-2018 year to include many images of resources never previously exhibited. Each month, a group of images which related to specific events from 100 years before were be added to the site. The exhibition also included items which demonstrate the enormous impact of the revolution and the civil war on the arts.

Undergraduates and library staff from across the University shared in the curatorial work. Each student researched a specific item and provide a caption exploring the item’s connection to the theme of the October Revolution.

The exhibition is arranged below, with groups of month-specific objects following each main monthly caption. The earliest groups towards the bottom of the page use paired months to reflect the continued use of the Julian calendar in the former Russian Empire until February 1918. Full images of the exhibits can be viewed by clicking on the large square thumbnails at the foot of each item’s page. Some exhibits have extended captions which can be seen by clicking on “Extended captions” at the end of the base caption.